Surprise! Bills select Spiller with 9th pick of NFL Draft

The NFL Draft normally features plenty of surprises, and the Buffalo Bills should elicit plenty of conversations with their first pick of the 2010 Draft.

Bryan Sullivan, staff writer

The NFL Draft normally features plenty of surprises, and the Buffalo Bills should elicit plenty of conversations with their first pick of the 2010 Draft.

The Bills selected Clemson running back CJ Spiller with the ninth overall pick Thursday. Spiller was the ACC Player of the Year this fall after finishing with 2,680 all-purpose yards and 21 total touchdowns as a senior.

Spiller is the first running back selected in the first round by the Bills since Marshawn Lynch in 2007, and now joins Lynch and Fred Jackson at tailback.

Buffalo surprised many by not selecting an offensive or defensive lineman or quarterback, areas many analysts and fans thought needed to be addressed on the first day of the draft.
“He is a playmaker, a guy that that creates field position and scores points and he is exciting,” Bills general manager Buddy Nix said about Spiller. “We need some excitement, somebody that can make a big play and create things on their own.”

Spiller comes to Orchard Park after a memorable senior season with the Tigers. The multi-talented back finished with 1,212 yards and 12 touchdowns rushing. He was just as much of threat in the return game (five touchdowns) and receiving game (36 receptions, 503 yards).
Spiller’s most impressive showing may have come in the ACC Championship where he was named MVP despite the fact the Tigers lost to Georgia Tech. He finished with 233 yards rushing and four touchdowns against the Yellow Jackets.

Many scouts thought Spiller could have been a high pick in last year’s draft but he decided to return to school for his senior season. Spiller graduated with a degree in sociology, becoming the first person in his family to receive a college diploma.

“When I laid down last night I reflected on all of my visits and I just remembered all of my conversations that I had when I went up to Buffalo,” Spiller said. “I had a good feeling that’s where I was going to land.”

Spiller started only 19-of-52 games at Clemson but he was a valuable contributor for four seasons, finishing with 7,588 all-purpose yards and 51 touchdowns.

Spiller is not only an outstanding runner and receiver but an excellent kick returner (eight touchdowns in four years). Nix and Tom Modrak, the Bills vice president of college scouting, compared Spiller to New Orleans’ Reggie Bush and Tennessee’s Chris Johnson.

“We make another step here and continue to make those steps forward,” Modrak said. “(Spiller) has a lot of ways to get you and that makes it really good for us.”

Spiller will try to steal playing time from Lynch and Jackson, although Lynch’s days in Buffalo appear to be numbered. Rumors continue to swirl that the Bills are looking to trade the fourth-year back, with some saying he could be traded this weekend.

Jackson led the Bills with 1,062 yards rushing last year, while Lynch recorded a career-low 450.

“It’s a great offense, (head coach Chan Gailey) knows how to use the guys so I’m excited,” Spiller said. “I’m just looking forward to going in there and learning from the guys. Whatever my role is, that’s what I have to accept.”

Buffalo chose Spiller even with offensive lineman Anthony Davis (Rutgers), who several analysts expected the team to select, still on the board. Davis was chosen two picks later by San Francisco.

The team also passed on defensive stalwarts Jason Pierre-Paul (South Florida) and Derrick Morgan (Georgia Tech). They were selected 15th and 16th, respectively.

“We wanted to get the best player who we thought could make this team better and that is what we did,” Modrak said. “We still have some picks to go and hopefully we can add to this team in many other ways today, tomorrow and the next day.”

While many will question the selection, Nix and Modrak think the move will spark an offense that sputtered not just last year but for most of this century. The Bills finished 30th in the league total offense, including 16th in rushing and 30th in passing last year.

“My main focus is just winning, getting to the Super Bowl and bringing back the glory days that used to be in Buffalo,” Spiller said. “That’s my main focus and that is all I’m worried about.”

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